


Art/Words: The Tales of Crimson Dragon and Golden Puma

by LFB72



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Angst with a Happy Ending, Art, BAMF Arthur, BAMF Merlin, Cats, Dragons, Getting Together, Gift Exchange, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Inspired by Miraculous Ladybug, Loss of Powers, M/M, Magic, Merlin Holidays, Mutual Pining, Suitable for remix, Superheroes, Traditional Media, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-21
Updated: 2018-01-21
Packaged: 2019-02-10 05:51:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12905454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LFB72/pseuds/LFB72
Summary: Chapter 1 Art / words : 4 pictures in coloured pencil / pastel pencil for The Merlin holiday fest.Chapter 2 Art onlyMerlin seems to be a normal teenage boy — he wants to become a doctor, he’s a bit awkward and clumsy and he has a crush on a classmate. Merlin has a secret other teenagers don't have —  he lives a double life as a crime-fighting superhero known as Crimson Dragon. He uses his superpowers to help protect his adoptive city of Camelot from the supervillain Hawk. He is assisted, reluctantly, by fellow hero Golden Puma, even though he insists he doesn't need him —  a stance he might not take if he knew Golden Puma’s alter ego is his crush, Arthur. Together, Crimson Dragon and Golden Puma help protect Camelot from Hawk and other villains.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Plutonia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Plutonia/gifts).



> Dear Plutonia, you gave me such wonderful prompts it was hard to choose but this one really appealed: Prompt 4, Modern, Superhero AU where Merlin and Arthur are partners with superpowers, working together to protect their city. This was loosely inspired by Miraculous ladybug, although, no knowledge of the programme is necessary. The Merlin universe fits very well into this AU even if I did go off on a bit of a tangent.
> 
> I  had so much fun with this, I really hope you enjoy what I have produced. I only intended to do art but some words crept in there too.
> 
> Thank you so much to my wonderful art and word betas. I can't express my gratitude enough for helping me with Merlin's costume changes and licking this into shape. Merlinsdeheune (sindhunathi), Pelydryn, Tari_sue and Clea201, I could not have done this without your patience and expertise.
> 
> Lastly, many thanks to the moderators for organising such a feel good fest.
> 
> Disclaimer: Merlin characters are the property of Shine and BBC. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

[](https://imgur.com/AZxCGK3) 

 

_Two sides of the same coin: Golden Puma has the power of destruction and Crimson Dragon has the power of creation. They’re superheroes working together to defeat evil and keeping the citizens of Camelot safe._

 

   [](https://imgur.com/lbtTRZB) 

 

“So, Camelot is safe again, thanks to us. Admit it, Dragon, we make a good team.”

The Dragon nods his head. “I guess we do. Incidentally, why do you call yourself the ‘Golden Puma’ when your costume is black?”

“Really? You have to ask?” He shakes his flaxen locks. “Black is sexy!”

The dragon merely tuts and rolls his eyes.

Golden Puma runs his hands down his taut torso and glances at his pert, leather clad, black behind. “It’s slimming too,” he adds quietly.

The Dragon's gaze scans the feline’s physique. His face splits into a wide grin and eyes crinkle behind the mask. “It suits you.”

“Want to take a closer look at this fine fighting specimen?” purrs the puma, confidence restored.

_Beep, beep!_

The dragon checks his watch. “That pleasure will have to wait. I’ve got to go before I transform back.” He wraps himself in his crimson cloak and disappears in a swirl of red and gold scales.

“I’m afraid my heart belongs to another,” echoes as the whirlwind fades.

“That’s a shame. My heart belongs to you.”

_Beep, beep!_

He glances at his ring, “I’ve got to go too. Time to become Arthur Pendragon again,” he mutters to himself as he leaps off the top of the tall building.

 

****

_6 months previously:_

__

Merlin felt a sharp dig in his ribs. “Not you too?” hisses Gwen.

“That hurt!” he replies indignantly, rubbing his side and not having heard a word of what she said.

“Mooning over Arthur Pendragon, part-time model, fencing champion, heir and only son to millionaire businessman, Uther Pendragon.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, come on.” Gwen giggles and wiggles her index fingers. “The whole school is gossiping about him. He was home-schooled until recently, then he lost his mother, which is why he’s come here.”

“Poor guy.”

“Yes, it must have been terrible. Sophie knows him; their fathers are acquainted. She’s telling anyone that will listen she’s known Arthur for years — they ran around the garden naked together when they were six, apparently.

“Splashing in the paddling pool, was it?” Merlin adds fondly, remembering doing the same with his neighbour, Will.

“More like grand ornamental lake. Anyway, he seems to have hooked up with Gwaine and some of the other ‘sporty’ types; I guess he would though, looking like that.

 [](https://imgur.com/JTAUIWw)

Merlin gazes at the blond Adonis making his way across the sports field in a bright red hoodie.

His mouth drops open.

“You’re drooling.”

He clamps his jaw shut. “I could never look like that. I guess you’re right, he’d never want to hang out with someone like me.”

Gwen gasps. “I did not mean to imply you’re not manly or don’t have muscles. You do, obviously, they're just much more streamlined and his are so much bigger. You’re…”

“Skinny and clumsy,” Merlin supplies helpfully.

“No! I did not —” Gwen reaches out to grab his arm.

“It’s ok, Gwen, you can say it.”

Merlin smiles ruefully. No one would ever suspect he is the magic crime fighting superhero, Crimson Dragon. His secret identity is quite safe.

Sirens suddenly blaze, and a tinny message comes over the intercom telling students to stay in the building as Camelot is once again under attack.

“I need to go and pee,” Merlin announces, breaking free from Gwen’s grip.

“What, again? You need to get that checked out, Merlin.”

Merlin grimaces.

_My secret identity is definitely secure. Not only does my best friend think I'm an uncoordinated nerd, she also thinks I have bladder problem – Great!_

“I need to go. I’ll catch up with you later.”

Merlin runs down the corridor towards the men’s locker room and swings his backpack off his shoulder. “Time to transform, Kilgharrah!” he whispers to the tiny dragon and power source secreted inside the bag. “We must save Camelot!”.

****

_18 months later:_

“So, have you made a decision yet, Golden Puma?” The Hawk sneers.

He had; he did not even need to think about it. He just wants more time.

“Hand over your powers and I will let the Dragon go free. He has not got long left, though. You’ll need to be quick.”

Over a year of fighting side by side, and of covering for each other. Together they are a formidable force — invincible, not anymore, not today; today they lost. He made a mistake; he was not quick enough. For all their many victories and successes, it means nothing if he loses the Dragon.

“Let me see him.”

A screen pulls back to reveal his broken partner crumpled on the floor. The Dragon’s costume is ripped and covered in blood; he’s pale and unresponsive.

Arthur crouches down, feeling for a pulse. It’s faint and thready.

He wants to scream and shout, to make those who did this pay. That won't help right now. He has to stay calm and in control, no matter how he feels inside.

“You will save him if I give you my powers?”

“I will.”

The Dragon stirs. “It’s over. Leave me.”

“Never.”

“No, don’t do this,” he croaks.

“I don’t have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice,” he coughs, lips stained crimson.

“Not if I want to save you.”

Arthur faces away from the Hawk. He dips his head and gently kisses the Dragon. “I’m so sorry, please forgive me, but you have to live.”

He slips the ring of power from his finger and feels the tingle as his body begins to transform.

 

The air fills with static. The costume seems to buzz and spark. The disguise falls away; the mask disappears, the outfit too, and although fully clothed, Arthur is left feeling totally naked. No superpowers, no finesse or smart remarks to hide behind. Everything has gone. He has nothing, nothing but the thin shred of hope that the bargain he’s made with a monster will save the man he loves.

There’s a gasp. Behind the mask, Arthur sees the Dragon’s deep blue eyes widen.

Arthur shakes his head and tries but fails to force a smile upon his lips. “It will be alright, I promise.”

Reluctantly he turns and walks, head bowed, towards the Hawk. It’s the first time his nemesis has appeared in person. The Hawk prefers to work in the shadows and out of view, content to cause chaos and manipulate from the sidelines.

Arthur stops in front of the figure and holds out his arm, firm and horizontal. With a sigh, he uncurls his fingers, presenting the ring inside.

Nothing happens.

Slowly, Arthur’s head comes up until he’s staring directly into the cold grey eyes of the Hawk.

“Arthur?”

The ring drops from his palm.

Ping!

He can hear the metal band as it hits the floor and bounces, once, twice, then spins on its axis across the stone until it finally runs out of momentum and stops. He does not go after it; he does not look. He cannot tear his gaze away from the man in front of him.

“How is this possible?” A small smile spreads over the Hawk’s face. Behind the grey mask it looks grotesque.

“Father?”

“Arthur.” The Hawk steps forward arms wide.

Arthur recoils, jerking his shoulder free of the man’s grasp.

“How could you?” Arthur’s face flushes and he stumbles back towards the Dragon. “How could you do this to Camelot, to our family, to him?” Arthur points to the crumpled figure.

It’s hard to see due to moisture building up in the corners of his eyes. He blinks and shakes his head. He has no superpowers, but Arthur is still an elite athlete; he charges.

“How could you do this to her, to my mother!”

The smile vanishes, and the Hawk raises his hand.

Arthur is frozen mid-stride, fist clenched inches from the Hawk’s chest.

“Enough! Don’t you see? Don’t you understand? This is all about her, it always has been. The combined power of all three artefacts; mine, transference, yours, destruction, and his, creation. Used together is the ultimate prize; we can bring her back. You could see her again. Isn't that what you want?”

Arthur loved his mother; there's not a day he does not think about her. He misses her presence and love acutely.

“Give me his watch.”

Arthur shakes his head. Tears streak down his face. “No. She’s dead, he’s still alive. You said you would let him go. You promised you would help him.”

“I need his power.”

Arthur lets out a strangled cry. “It’s broken, destroyed. Do you not think he would have healed himself with his magic, if he could?”

The Hawk throws back his head and laughs. Arthur snarls, struggling like a wildcat against invisible bonds.

“Foolish boy, have you learnt nothing? Magic cannot be destroyed.”

“But -”

“Blocked, bound, diverted, but never destroyed. Whilst the pair of you were celebrating your victories, parading around on the news as heroes, opening village fetes and hospitals, did you think I would go away? Did you think I was defeated? No, I learned, I studied, and I waited. Give me that watch, and I can reactivate the magic within it.”

“Heal him or go to hell.”

“Then we have a deal.”

The force holding Arthur immobile abruptly stops; he crashes to the floor. Picking himself up slowly, he approaches the Dragon.

His partner flinches in his presence. “No. Please…”

The clasp of the watch comes away easily in Arthur’s fingers. The Dragon attempts to grasp his arm but Arthur moves away. He can't bear to see the hurt on his face and know he's the cause of it.

“Well, done my son.”

The Hawk clicks his fingers, and the watch vibrates in Arthur's hand.

He walks towards his father, the watch held in his fist. Arthur lifts his arm and pauses, his gaze fixes upon the hawk tie pin.

“Give it to me, Arthur.”

“With pleasure.” Arthur pulls back his elbow and lands the punch on the Hawk’s chin with all the force he can muster.

There is an audible crack and Uther Pendragon flies; he lands hard on the ground with a grunt, as the air in his lungs forces out on impact.

Arthur reaches over the body and extracts the hawk tie pin; it buzzes in his palm. He doesn’t bother to check on his father or watch him transform into the man he thought he knew. He knows the power in the artefact will have protected Uther to some extent. His father is not his priority.

The Dragon is slumped, dark hair obscuring his features. Ironically, Arthur’s ring has come to rest close by. He can sense the power radiating off it, and he picks it up. Arthur has all three now — he hopes it will be enough.

He gently holds the man’s head and tilts it back, brushing his hair away from his face. Arthur is shocked to discover the mighty Dragon is none other than a student in his class. Perpetually late and flustered, he often arrives with his hair in disarray and his top on backwards, but he’s the smartest student there. He always has a wide smile even when he trips over his own bag and takes several books with him.

“Merlin?” he whispers.“Merlin?”

There is no response.

Arthur shakes Merlin’s shoulder. “Please wake up.”

Merlin is too still, too pale, too quiet.

Arthur slips his ring on Merlin’s finger, struggling in his haste to push it over the joint. He tentatively re-ties the Dragon’s watch; finally, he places the hawk pin on his ex-partner’s chest then rocks back on his heels and waits.

Nothing happens.

Arthur’s hands shake, and his breath comes in big gasps. “Please,” he pleads. “I can’t lose him.” He clasps Merlin’s hand in his own and rests their foreheads together.

It begins as a buzz of static, a hum of sound and sliver of light that escapes Merlin’s closed palm. It builds; the magic tickles his skin until it sparks and burns. The noise becomes deafening, the light blinding, forcing Arthur to shield his eyes and protect his ears from the onslaught.

He lets go; he tries not to, but the air whips up into a whirlwind that pulls them apart with a roar so loud it could be a scream.

The explosion blew the windows out. Arthur wakes up covered in a fine sand rather than shards of glass. The air is hazy and the dust catches the back of his throat, making him cough. He can’t hear and can barely see. Rolling onto his hands and knees, he crawls through the debris, calling, shouting —  even though his voice makes no sound. His fingers are desperately searching for a body.

A hand grabs his shoulder, a paramedic. Focusing, he can see other figures moving around, police, fire, ambulance. Someone helps him up, places a blanket on his shoulders and shines a light in his eyes. He pulls back and tries to get away.

_Where’s Merlin?_

He must have been shouting because the paramedic points in the direction of the door. Arthur can make out two figures with blankets wrapped around their shoulders being attended to. He lets go of the consciousness he’s been holding onto and does not remember much after that.

 

“Hi.”

“Hmm?”

Arthur moves his head and tries to turn his body towards the noise. The sheets are so tight it feels like he’s strapped down, which can only mean one thing. A strong whiff of disinfectant confirms his suspicions: hospital.

Arthur prises sticky eyelids open.

“Not a morning person, then,” the voice says, amused — it sounds familiar.

“Dragon?”

The smile vanishes, and Merlin bites his lip. “Not anymore.”

Arthur’s appalled at his mistake. “Sorry, that was...” He flounders, losing his words. Fully awake now, he takes in Merlin’s appearance. There are no bruises or visible scars; he’s sitting in a wheelchair but seems to be moving all his limbs without difficulty. “You look great!” he blurts out. “You’re alright?”

Merlin’s cheeks colour, and he looks away. “I’m fine.” He gestures at the wheelchair. “This is just a precaution. They want to keep me on observation because I was unconscious, but I’m fine, really.” He looks directly at Arthur. “Thank you.” He’s dressed in a hospital gown and is fiddling with the identification bracelet. “I’m sorry, about your father.”

“So am I.”  Arthur finds his own wristband and spins it round. “He always wanted the best, was always distant and stern, more so, after… after mum.” His voice hitches as he snatches up a cup of water from a nearby table. Taking a large gulp, he continues, “He wasn’t the same after she’d gone, but this? I could never have imagined — ”

“Grief can make people do terrible things.”

“He tried to kill you.”

“You stopped him.”

“I should –”

“He’s still your father, Arthur.”

“I don’t even know how he is.”

"He’s alright, I overheard some of the medics chatting. They say he does not remember anything.”

Arthur snorts and bangs the bed with his fist. “How convenient; that’s rubbish, of course he remembers. I remember what happened, don’t you?”

“Everything.”

There is an awkward pause.

"I don't think he has any super powers anymore, none of us do." Merlin bites his lip and picks at his cuticles before continuing. "The artefacts were destroyed, that was the price for using their power together."

“I always looked up to him, I wanted him to be proud, but I’m not like him.”

“No, not at all.” Merlin looks up. “What you did for me... the choices you made, standing up to your father… it was very brave.”

Arthur focuses on a bird outside the window, then turns his attention back to Merlin. “You would have done the same.”

“I would do everything in my power to save the ones I love.”

“I know.” He sighs. “I always hoped you’d fall for the Golden Puma.”

Merlin smiles ruefully. “He was quite full of himself, arrogant, but he had a good heart.”

“Not your heart. Your heart belongs to another.”

“Yes, it does”

Arthur looks away, but he feels Merlin grasp his fingers.

“Look at me.”

He obeys.

“My heart belongs to Arthur Pendragon!” Merlin shrugs. “Always has, always will.” He releases his grip. “The trouble is, he never really wanted me, he only wanted the Dragon. The Dragon’s gone now.” He tries to manoeuvre the wheelchair away. “You never even noticed me.”

Arthur stops Merlin, placing his hand on the wheel. “I noticed.”

“Really?”

“Hard not to when you dropped an anatomy book on my foot and trod on my toes.”

The temperature in the room seems to drop a few degrees as the air stills. The silence is painful, until it's broken.

“You shouldn't have such bloody big feet then!” Face flaming, Merlin wrestles with the brake and jerks the wheelchair forward.

“No wait!”

Merlin pauses.

“I’m sorry. I’m not good with words; it’s easier when there’s a mask and a suit to hide behind."

It takes a while for reply to come and when it does the words are almost a whisper.“You don’t have to hide.”

“You don’t have to change." Arthur rushes, desperate to salvage the situation. "I don't regret my choices or anything that happened; I would rather lose my powers than lose you. I fell for the dragon but he’s the same person underneath, isn't he?”

Merlin swallows, taking his time to answer. “Sort of, no magic, a bit clumsier. Different taste in clothes.”

Arthur’s mouth twitches. “I can live with that; cloaks are overrated. Seriously, he sounds like the kind of guy I’d like to get to know —  if you let me.”

Merlin nods,“I’d like that.”

They both jump as the door burst open.

“Ah, Mr Emrys, we wondered where you’d got too. We were just about to call security.”

“Sorry. I wanted to see how Arthur was.”

“Well, now you’ve seen with your own eyes that he's very well, you can wheel yourself back to bed. You have visitors, and the police want to ask you some questions”

“I don’t remember anything.”

“Bed, Mr Emrys.”

Merlin continues to argue as he’s forcibly removed from Arthur’s room.

“I’ll see you around, Merlin,” Arthur calls to the retreating figure.

“Looking forward to it,” replies the disembodied voice.

“So am I,” Arthur says to himself. “So am I.

_6 months later:_

In a disused warehouse covered in yellow police tape, the dust stirs. Out of the ashes rises a bird, not a phoenix but a hawk. The hawk is not alone; the particles also form a small, red dragon and a marmalade cat. The creatures nod to each other and go their separate ways.

They may be returning to their previous owners, or perhaps they’re looking for new ones. They will find a place; their power cannot be destroyed. Power can change, move, be displaced or hidden but never destroyed. So, the cycle begins again.

The End

 


	2. Art only

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Four pieces of traditional art, title banner and dividers

[](https://imgur.com/AZxCGK3) 

 

 

   [](https://imgur.com/lbtTRZB)        

 

<

 

 

 

 

 

****

 

__

 

 [](https://imgur.com/JTAUIWw)

 

 

****

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed the story and the art and it all made sense.


End file.
